Yankees prevent Severino from participating in WBC

The New York Yankees won't allow right-hander Luis Severino to participate in the World Baseball Classic, which kicks off March 7.

"We support our players going (to the WBC), but when you have a player like Luis Severino who has had an injury history the last few years, of course, he wanted to play and represent his country, but that's not in our best interest given losing him so far over the last few years," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said during an appearance on 670 The Score.

"Having him pitch competitive, championship-pending, World Baseball Classic, I think ends in March, versus preparation innings in March for your long-haul season, that was a decision I had to make."

Severino, 28, was part of the pitcher pool for the Dominican Republic during the 2017 event but didn't make an appearance.

The following season, Severino broke out, posting a 3.18 ERA and 3.01 FIP over 384 2/3 innings in back-to-back All-Star campaigns from 2017-18.

However, since then, Severino has been hobbled by injuries, throwing 120 total innings over the following four years while requiring Tommy John surgery. Last year was a resurgent one for the right-hander, posting a 3.18 ERA and 3.70 FIP in 102 innings while missing time due to a lat strain.

"I respect he wanted to play, but I gotta protect the Yankees first," Cashman added. "He's too important to us. His injury history the last few years, it's better to get him out of the gate nice and slow."

The league and MLBPA have agreed upon parameters for team ownership to prevent certain players from being included on WBC provisional rosters based on certain factors, including recent playing time and injury status.